


Of Coffee and Pink Gloves

by Wubz



Category: The Book of Mormon - Parker/Stone/Lopez
Genre: Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Coffee, Fluff, M/M, and i'm really happy with it, i wrote this for school whoops, it was too long but i still sent it in, so here
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-01
Updated: 2019-01-01
Packaged: 2019-10-02 02:34:01
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,684
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17255996
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Wubz/pseuds/Wubz
Summary: Walking into a coffee shop was what always felt the most like home. For Kevin, that is.





	Of Coffee and Pink Gloves

The little bell of the café rang through the room, signaling a new customer. Kevin entered the café, the soft music of whatever Christmas song they decided to play rang through the restaurant and made Kevin feel more at home than any other place did. The tall chairs and tables and even the tacky couches that circled around a coffee table were so simple and neat that he couldn’t help but smile. There really was no place like home than a coffee house. 

He walked up to the counter and noticed the boy that was working that hour. He was a few inches shorter than him with red hair like flames and freckles that covered his face, and, if Kevin looked closely, continued down his neck and to his shoulders. He didn’t look much older than him, and he wore a bright smile that tugged at his cheeks. He noticed large bags under bright blue eyes, and if Kevin thought the restaurant felt like home, then those eyes felt like paradise. Kevin glanced at the boy’s nametag attached to his apron that read “Connor”. He smiled, Connor. He liked that name. 

“Hi, may I take your order?” Connor asked, his smile not ending with practiced ease. Kevin hummed as though in thought, despite already knowing his usual. 

“Yes, can I get a black coffee?” He asked. Connor raised his eyebrows. 

“A-A black coffee...?” He asked slowly, looking incredulous. “Isn’t that a little... Bitter?” Now it was Kevin’s turn to raise his eyebrows. 

“I don’t know, isn’t it a little harsh to question a customer’s order?” He responded, savoring every moment when Connor’s cheeks turned pink in embarrassment. 

“I- well, that’s-” He fumbled, apparently very caught off-guard. “That’s- That’s true. I apologize.” Connor put his order into the register, and Kevin noted that he wasn’t wearing any gloves, which made no sense with the current weather. 

“...Would that be all?” Connor asked with a seemingly strained smile. Kevin frowned, he never liked being the cause of anything like that. It seemed to wound his ego and his need to please everyone. Quick, think of something to lighten the mood! Something good! Something cool! Or literally anything! 

“Would it be too cheesy if I asked for your number as well?” He tried, already dreading it when he said it. That wasn’t cool. However, he was surprised and took great amounts of pleasure when Connor’s cheeks go from pink to red in the matter of seconds. 

“I- well.” Connor looked around nervously, as though someone would barge in and yell at him for whatever reason. He looked terrified, flipping his head from side to side in fear of whatever was to come. Kevin decided that was a question for later, if he ever got to later, that is. Connor eventually calmed down when he noticed that no one was coming, and he smiled a genuine smile. 

“I’m not sure... I don’t think we have that on the menu.” He responded in a surprisingly teasing way and finished up Kevin’s order. He handed the receipt back to him and turned to start on Kevin’s coffee. While he was doing so, Kevin swerved around the counter to continue their chat. 

“Is that so? Then could I offer you some coffee after your shift?” He asked, hoping to God that he didn’t sound desperate. I mean, he was pretty desperate to get a date with this boy, but that was beside the point. Connor laughed and shacked his head, waiting for the coffee to brew. 

“Oh no, I hate coffee.” He said. Kevin blinked. Connor hated coffee? How? 

“How?” Kevin repeated out loud. He remembered the bags under Connor’s eyes and grew a little more worried. “You work in a coffee shop?” Connor laughed again, pouring the coffee into a cup. 

“A man’s gotta make money somehow. Just because I work at a coffee shop doesn’t mean I have to like the product, you know.” He teased, with a knowing look in his eyes. “Although, I wouldn’t mind somewhere else.” That peaked Kevin’s interest. 

“Oh yeah? Like what?” He asked, smiling. Connor finished Kevin’s cup of coffee by putting a lid on it and handed it back to him. 

“I’m free this Sunday at eight, I’d be willing to go anywhere else... Like ice skating, perhaps.” 

“It’s a date, then.” Kevin smiled. He grabbed the coffee that Connor had made for him and left the restaurant. Just as he had taken a sip of the boiling liquid, it occurred to him that he was too busy being excited about the date that he actually didn’t get his contact information. Kevin glanced down at his mug, and a smile tugged at his lips as he saw a phone number with the word “Connor” after it. “Not on the menu, huh...?” He murmured. 

A few days later, Kevin found himself at an ice rink with a cute boy and it had only just occurred to him that he had no idea how to ice skate. Incredible plan, Kevin! Embarrass yourself on the first date! He had stepped onto the ice and immediately fell over, Connor quickly skating over to him with a concerned look on his face. 

He wore a long scarf with green and white stripes and a long, black coat. His eyes still created that beautiful contrast against his hair, and his freckles still covered his entire face. However, the biggest difference was definitely the pink gloves. They stood out against everything else around them. He had no right to look that cute. Kevin suddenly remembered himself as Connor held out a hand to help him up, which he gratefully took. 

“Are you okay?” Connor asked, concern evident in his voice, but you could also tell he was trying not to laugh. Kevin groaned in embarrassment but nodded. 

“Yeah, I only just remembered that I don’t know how to skate.” He said, rubbing at the back of his neck in embarrassment. Connor snorted and Kevin felt like he might have literally fallen for him. 

“If you didn’t know how to ice skate, why did you agree to this place? You could have easily suggested something else.” He said, no longer trying to hold back his laughter. Kevin choked down his embarrassment, he had a chance to be cool. Don’t mess it up! 

“I don’t know, guess it gave me the opportunity to fall for you.” He said, running a hand through his brown hair and hoping to god that looked smooth rather than weird and awkward. By Connor’s red face, he decided to go for the former. 

“Oh my gosh, that was the cheesiest thing I've ever heard. But I think I would still like to be on this date. So congratulations.” Connor teased. Kevin felt himself melt. Someone who might as well be a stranger shouldn’t have this much of an effect on him, it was unfair. “Anyways,” Connor stuck his hand out in front of Kevin with a warm smile on his face, “would you like me to teach you?” 

Kevin felt warmth flood him despite the freezing temperatures, and with snow falling around his bright red hair, pale skin, thousands of freckles, and bright eyes, he thought he looked like an absolute angel. So, he smiled and took Connor’s hand, letting him lead him across the ice. Kevin felt as though he were going to fall the entire time but with Connor’s warm, now pink-gloved hand, he felt safer than he ever had in his life. 

Connor led him around the rink, skating backwards while holding onto Kevin’s hand – which was really not fair at all. 

“Just imagine that you’re walking.” Connor instructed. 

“I don’t think people walk like this.” 

“No, no. Imagine that you’re marching, then? Like, lift your foot up, then push forward when you hit the ground – like that! - and repeat that motion the entire time.” Connor explained with a smile so bright that it made Kevin forget they were in New York winter. 

“Right.” Kevin nodded in understanding and tried to get a hang of it, which he was. 

“Okay, I’m going to let go now.” Kevin took that last statement back. He was absolutely not getting the hang of it and if Connor ever let him go, he was going to fall and die and never return. Unfortunately, Connor wasn’t psychic, and he could not hear Kevin’s thoughts. So, he let go of his hand. Kevin immediately began to flail his arms about to try and maintain balance. 

Connor watched him patiently the entire time and didn’t move away, as if he was ready to catch Kevin if he needed to at all. Kevin felt a surge of relief and fondness flow through his body at that thought, and after a few minutes he managed to stand on his own. He looked at Connor who was smiling at him as if he had just won the Olympics. “See? I knew you could do it.” He said. Kevin grinned as his ego fed on the praise. 

“Yeah, I knew I would.” He boasted. 

“Right...” Connor said fondly. “Do you think you can actually skate, Mr. Big-Shot?” He teased, though now that Kevin thought about it, he sounded a little tired. He decided that was another question for another day. Kevin looked down at the ice and took a deep breath. He lifted his foot like Connor had told him to and slid forward onto the ice. He felt a surge of confidence, and he slid a few more times. When he almost fell over again, he decided that yeah, that’s enough for now. He told the redhead that he wanted to see him skate (if he was being honest, he just didn’t want to embarrass himself, but Connor didn’t have to know that), and he moved to the wall. 

Kevin watched Connor skate and felt his breath being taken away. Connor moved just like a professional ice skater, he did many jumps that Kevin didn’t know the name of and twirled around. He seemed like he knew what he was doing, like he wasn’t the scared man he usually was. As if this was what he was meant to do. His pink gloves created a stark contrast between him and the world, and he looked absolutely stunning. 

After Connor was finished, he returned to Kevin and helped him skate off of the ice rink. They sat on the bench and made idle chat. 

“So... Are you a professional ice skater or something?” Kevin asked as he began to untie his ice skate. Connor laughed and shook his head. 

“Gosh, no. I’m actually in school to be a dance instructor. I just ice skate for fun.” He replied, smiling at Kevin. Kevin nodded. 

“I major in education and minor in math, working on my third year now.” 

“A working man I see.” Connor smirked, taking off his ice skates and replacing them with his shoes. “I like that.” Kevin felt heat surface onto his face but smiled anyways. 

“So... I know you said you don’t like coffee at all, which still doesn’t make sense to me, by the way, but would you be willing to let me take you out to a coffee place? I can probably get you something that you’d like.” He asked. Connor looked at him long, seeming to think about something. Kevin noticed how his bright blue eyes seemed to dart around again like they did at the restaurant, and somehow the bags under his eyes seemed to be more prevalent. Kevin began to get more nervous the longer the silence stretched out. Every second seemed to dig Kevin deeper and deeper into a dark pit. Had the date gone wrong? Was Connor unhappy? Did he mess up? Did Connor never want to see his face again? He was about to voice these thoughts in what would probably have been awkward and pitiful, but Connor answered before he got a chance to embarrass himself. 

“Of course, that would be lovely.” He said, smiling tiredly, but still seeming happy and satisfied, so that was a win. 

“Right. Of course.” Kevin responded a little too enthusiastically. 

Those few dates soon turned into many dates, and he found himself falling more and more for the boy. Almost every day he would come to the coffee shop, feeling as if he was home. As if this was the only place he could find happiness. Here in the comfort of the burn of the coffee, the coziness of the tacky couches and tall chairs, and the bright blue of Connor’s eyes. They all seemed to fit into place. He felt happy, something he thought he wouldn’t find again, something that felt foreign but definitely not unwelcomed. 

Of course, all good things had to come to an end. Because they always did with Kevin Price. Why would things ever be different this one time? 

Connor had asked him about his parents, they had been dating for a year now, and Kevin felt extremely hesitant. Over the year, Kevin learned that Connor has an incredibly terrible sleeping schedule, he truly did hate coffee, he was an amazing dancer, he rarely wore his pink gloves in public, and he made Kevin feel like the most important person in the world. So Kevin had very obvious reasons as to why he did not want to invite Connor over to his parent’s house, but the boy kept insisting and Kevin decided what could possibly go wrong? 

Kevin drank five cups of coffee that day. He walked up to his parent’s door, Connor’s hand in one hand, and a cup of coffee in the other. He knocked on the door and the seconds seemed to be hours. Connor looked nervous, he always did when out in public, but Kevin could see the pure joy in his eyes and Kevin felt his heart melt, so he squeezed his boyfriend’s pink-gloved hand. 

The door finally opened to reveal Kevin’s mom, looking over the moon, until she laid eyes on Connor. Connor smiled nervously and took his gloved hand out. 

“Um, hello ma’am. My name is Connor McKinley.” And for a moment, Kevin felt hopeful. Maybe his mom wouldn’t react the way he thought she would. Maybe she would smile widely and take Connor's hand, introducing herself enthusiastically as Mrs. Price. But as soon as she looked at Connor's pink gloves, and Kevin's burning coffee, and didn't say anything, Kevin knew. She didn’t say anything and left, with Connor’s pink hand outstretched and everything. Connor looked at Kevin nervously, but Kevin couldn’t bring himself to say anything. Instead he stepped into his parent’s house with the redhead in tow. 

Kevin entered the living room and saw his parents sitting on the couch, his dad reading the newspaper and his mom reading a book as she sipped on tea. He felt anger rise in him. He cleared his throat. 

“Hello.” He said. His parents looked up, his mom looking displeased and his dad looked at Connor. He quickly grabbed onto Connor’s hand and squeezed it, noticing that Connor took off his gloves. They were going to get through this. Probably. Hopefully. “I’m here for dinner, like I said.” 

Kevin hated how much he looked like his mom, and he even hated any of the similarities he had with his dad. He especially hated when his mom nonchalantly brought the tea to her lips and began to drink, like it was completely normal. 

“And who is this?” His father asked, and Kevin felt his stomach churn. This was it. This was the moment he had hoped he wouldn’t have to do. At least not with these people. He would proudly shout it to the heavens if it were anyone else in front of him, but it wasn’t. It was the two people who built a house that he would never consider home. He brought the cup of coffee to his lips, and said it. Those two little words that made all Hell break loose. 

“My boyfriend.” His parents shot out of their seats as soon as the words slipped past his lips, he felt Connor jump back, and he hated that he brought him into all of this. Connor didn’t deserve to deal with his problems. 

“Excuse me!?” His mother asked incredulously, folding her arms. She stared at Kevin in pure disgust. Kevin found himself not caring. 

“You heard me. I’m not here to fight. I’m here to eat dinner with my boyfriend and parents.” Kevin answered defiantly. His mother scoffed and his father looked furious. Good. 

“Kevin, I thought you had gotten over this.” His father scolded, looking at Kevin with his light blue eyes. They could never compare to Connor’s. “You had finally reached out to us after you left for college, we thought that you had finally come to your senses.” He gestured to Connor with a sneer, “but clearly not.” 

“Young man, I expected more from you. You- You were such a good little boy, whatever happened to him? What happened to the boy that told me he was going to grow up and have a healthy family? I miss him so much. Where did he go? Why are there cups of coffee everywhere in this godforsaken house?” His mother looked like she was going to cry, and Kevin felt as though he were going to puke. He knew this was going to happen. He knew it. And yet, he let it happen. He let his feelings get in the way and he let Connor into his mess of a life. He deserved this. 

“You can’t get over what you can’t change about yourself.” Someone said, but it wasn’t Kevin. It was Connor looking at Kevin’s dad with a hard stare, despite his trembling, bare hands. “Your son is an amazing man and I am lucky to have even been given a glance from him. I don’t know your relationship with him, he never talked about you. But I just wanted to say I had wanted to meet you.” He was shaking now, and Kevin felt like he was going to cry. Connor was incredible. “But I see that I am not welcome here, and neither is he. I'm sorry that he is not what you had thought he was going to be, but if you can’t accept who he is, then you have no right to call yourselves his parents. Parents are there to love and support you, people who...” Connor trailed off, looking at the ground now. “People who love their kid no matter what. People who are always by their side, even if they don’t agree with what their child does.” Connor looked back at Kevin’s parents with tears pricking his eyes. “I assure you that we will not be coming back, not unless you solve your issues.” 

“Excuse me young man, you have no right to-” Kevin’s mom was cut off by Connor dragging Kevin away and out of the house. 

Stepping outside was like Kevin’s first breath. The snow falling on the ground again, surrounding Connor and everything he is. He was reminded of their first date and Connor seeming like an angel, which was a complete understatement by now. They went back into Connor’s car and sat for a few moments. Connor’s pink gloves were still off somewhere, and Kevin had drunk all his coffee. Kevin didn’t feel safe. They were still at the house with his parents. He wanted to go home. 

“Can... Can we talk at the coffee shop?” Kevin asked softly, looking down at the ground. 

“Of course.” He heard Connor say. Kevin had so much to say. So many thoughts in his head. But he couldn’t express them. Not here. Not now. 

The restaurant was closed due to the late time, and Connor used his keys to open the door and walk in. He turned on the lights and relief flooded Kevin like a hurricane. The same things in the same place. Everything as it should be. The smell of the coffee, the tacky couches, the tall chairs, and Connor. Connor and his flaming hair, his freckles, and his bright blue eyes. 

They sat at one of the couches and sat in silence for a few moments. Kevin collected his breath and thoughts, then looked at Connor. He was still as beautiful as the first time he saw him, and he felt happy looking at him. Connor was the first to speak up. 

“I... was raised religious.” He began, looking at his now gloved hands and playing with the ends of them. “I never really ‘came out’ as gay, my parent's kind of always knew. I mean, I was a boy who loved the color pink and to dance, I couldn’t really be more of a stereotype.” Connor laughed softly. “But... They were religious, and they accepted me. I, however... could not. The church constantly told me how much of a sin it was and I couldn’t really escape it. Every time I had a crush on a boy I would...” He trailed off and continued to fiddle with his gloves. 

Kevin gently placed his hand on top of Connor’s and made him stop playing with the glove, he slowly intertwined their fingers and let Connor breathe. After a few moments, he continued. “I would get these dreams – nightmares, really. Where I would burn in Hell for being gay, and... it terrified me. I still get them, frequently. I can’t sleep with them because they scare me so much.” Connor finally looked at Kevin, and Kevin could once again see how tired Connor actually was. “I still struggle with my sexuality... But I I know that I love you, and you’re the best thing to come into my life. Thank you.” Kevin stared back at him. 

“I should be the one thanking you, you know.” Kevin chuckled, “thank you for giving me a home.” Kevin gently place a kiss to Connor's pink-gloved hand. Then, a kiss to his lips. “So… would you be willing to take me out to some coffee sometime?”


End file.
